


Roommates

by Dopredo



Series: World's Your Oyster [4]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Humor, Confusion, Crossover, Developing Friendships, Fear, Friendship, Humor, Kree (Marvel), Light Angst, Manipulative Nick Fury, Marvel 616/MCU Crossover, New York City, Nick Fury Knows All, Post-Season/Series 06, Secrets, Sneaky Nick Fury, Teen Angst, Teenagers, Tension, Waffles, Weirdness, zima - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-22
Updated: 2019-03-10
Packaged: 2019-10-14 16:02:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17511644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dopredo/pseuds/Dopredo
Summary: During his travels, Deke stays with Peter Parker and Aunt May, under the unknown recommendation of Nick Fury. When Peter is kidnapped by a mad scientist, it is up to Deke to rescue him, and to uncover the truth about his super-human secret.I thought it would be cute if Deke met Peter, as Peter would do everything he could to get on his good side, thinking he was a SHIELD agent, but the likelihood is Deke wouldn’t even realise Peter was Spiderman.





	1. Collisions At the Door

**Author's Note:**

> SET AT THE START OF SEASON 6, AFTER THE SNAP HAS BEEN RESOLVED.
> 
> Deke has gone travelling to take a break from SHIELD.

Queens sparkled and glistened with pride, as Deke stepped out of his cab and onto the melting pavement. He’d been travelling for a few months now, and had already learnt a few things:

• Cabs cost money  
• Generally forgetting to pay is frowned upon  
• Running away afterwards is likely to get you in prison  
• Also, people make a really big fuss about something called the Avengers 

Deke grabbed his wallet, pulled out the amount of money written on the screen, and pushed it through the window towards the driver. He grinned enthusiastically at the brooding man in the taxi, who returned him with a grumpy sneer, revved up the engine and darted into the distant traffic. Deke frowned grumpily. 

‘People are so rude around here.’ He grumbled to himself. 

He looked down at the small piece of paper Daisy had given him before he left. On it was listed a name and address that Daisy said had been sent to her by someone else in SHIELD – according to them, the person he would be staying with was ‘a trusted ally’, and would be more than happy to help anyone in SHIELD.  
Deke wasn’t entirely sure why someone would be so keen, or why it was important that they were an ‘ally’, but nonetheless he was grateful for somewhere to stay (the money given to him by the Director could only go so far).

Eventually – with the help of several old women and an 85-year-old cleaner – Deke figured out how to get to Forest Hills, and before long found himself looking up at the block of apartments that would be his home for the next few weeks. He shoved his weight into the door in an attempt to get inside, but it wouldn’t budge. Huffing, he took a few steps backwards, giving himself a run-up, and ran – with full force – into the door. A few teenagers who were passing by witnessed the unfortunate act, and cackled as Deke slid down the door, blood gushing from his nose.

‘Oi, you,’ one of them laughed, pointing an accusative finger at him, ‘are you thick or something?’

Deke wiped his nose on his sleeve and cast the rowdy teen a grumpy glare.

‘It’s locked you weirdo.’ Another boy snorted, grinning wickedly to one of his friends.

‘Yeah,’ Deke moaned, pinching the top of his nose and grimacing, ‘I figured that bit out… unfortunately.’ The boys laughed again, and started closing in on Deke, taunting him with insults. Behind them, unbeknownst to Deke, a third boy had strolled up, intrigued by the scene. When he recognised the other boys he grimaced in recognition and started backing away. However, after noticing Deke, he scratched his head and exhaled slowly, preparing for the backlash of his next actions. He ran up behind the other boys and cast them a warning look. When they saw him they laughed.

‘Hey Parker,’ one of the boys taunted, ‘you out saving the world again.’

The two boys cackled as he walked up to Deke and pulled out a tissue.

‘For your nose.’ He smiled grimly. ‘You realise they’re like 15…’ He looked back at the other boys for a second. ‘Why were you letting them mess you up?’

Deke frowned at him confusedly and then smiled in acknowledgment.

‘Ah, what? No they didn’t.’ He scratched his head and pushed himself up from the ground. ‘I kinda… ran into the door.’

This time it was the nicer boy’s turn to laugh; however it wasn’t out of spite but out of sympathy. He reached out a hand to help Deke off the ground, and Deke took it gratefully. As soon as he was on his feet the other boys looked at each other knowingly and started walking in the opposite direction, calling back only to yell insults at the boy they’d named Parker.

‘Don’t worry we’ve all run into a door at some point,’ he lied, ignoring the other boys’ jeers, ‘you just… um you have to press the button…’ He demonstrated and then smiled at Deke unsurely. ‘Where are you?’ He asked politely.

‘Oh, I don’t know… I…’ He looked down at the piece of paper in his hand and then looked back at the boy. ‘Number 11375. Apparently I’m flat sharing?’

The boy coughed and then scratched his head.

‘That’s our apartment…’ he smiled politely, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. ‘Are you sure you’ve got the right one?’

‘Oh err, I’m not sure… I’m meant to find a woman.’ He glanced at the paper again. ‘May Parker?’

The boy smiled to hide his slight annoyance; he couldn’t believe that his aunt hadn’t told him they were going to have guests.

‘Yeah that’s us, I’ll show you up.’ The boy bit his lip and then thought better of it and held out his hand. ‘I’m Peter by the way. Peter Parker.’


	2. Waffles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deke begins to feel at home in New York and starts bonding with Peter.

‘Ah this place is great!’ Deke grinned, sticking his face out of the window and beaming at the streets below. 

‘Yeah it’s right in the centre. Perfect place to go as a tourist.’ Peter smiled, pulling off his backpack and throwing it onto the table. He looked at Deke blankly and then his eyes lit up. ‘Right! I need to show you your room!’

He led Deke down the hall and then flung open the door of the spare room. Deke poked his head through and then looked at Peter ecstatically.

‘This is brilliant, thank you!’

Peter laughed and shook his head. Who was this guy? He was so weird, but he kind of liked him. Unlike most of the agents he’d met, this guy seemed… happy.

‘So, you are with SHIELD, right?’ Peter queried, checking his theory that he had been sent here because SHIELD new it was a safe house.

Deke raised his eyebrows but then saw Peter’s placid expression and shrugged.

‘Yeah, kind of. It’s complicated… I’m taking some time-off.’

‘I get it,’ Peter nodded, ‘I can imagine a job somewhere like SHIELD would get exhausting eventually. You guys can be really uptight.’

Deke laughed and looked at the ground.

‘Yeah you can say that again. I just thought I needed some air… Once Daisy became a hard-arse I just kinda wondered why I was even staying there.’ Deke stared into the distance and Peter frowned awkwardly. After a few seconds Deke snapped away from the memory and blushed.

‘Who’s Daisy?’ Peter grinned cheekily. Deke laughed and scratched the back of his head.

‘She’s this woman I like… I mean, you know,’ he sighed, looking down embarrassedly, ‘and she hates me. Which generally isn’t a great starting point for a relationship.’

Peter pulled a face of sympathy, and tried to cover up his slight amusement.  
‘I’m sorry man, that’s rough.’

‘Yeah well, that’s life. And a lot worse happens every day.’ Deke exhaled quickly and swung himself onto the bed, smiling at Peter as he did so. Peter backed out of the room slightly and returned the smile.

‘So… if you need anything I’m in the room down the hall. My aunt will be back soon -- she’ll probably tell you more.’

After May had arrived and welcomed Deke, and once everyone had settled down, Deke decided it would be cool if he could go exploring. He felt he needed to acclimatise to the city, but he didn’t want to seem rude so he needed an excuse. Tuning into the conversation in the kitchen, and leaning over so he could see what was going on, he found one almost immediately.

‘Oh, Peter please could you nip to the shop to get some milk and biscuits? We’re out of both.’ May asked. Peter groaned and then nodded.

‘Yeah ok,’ Peter said thoughtfully. He looked up and grinned at her cheekily. ‘Can I get some of that cheese stuff too?’

‘Ah no, really? Come on that’s so expensive!’ May rolled her eyes.

‘I’ll buy it!’ Deke called from the living room, jumping up to join them. ‘I’d feel better if I paid for something.’

May smiled kindly but shook her head.

‘I can’t let you do that. Not on your first day. But if you want you can go with Pet – he’ll show you where we go to get groceries.’

Deke nodded and looked at Peter who shrugged. Deke thought it was very perceptive of her to realise that he wanted to get some air.

On the walk, Peter seemed quite fidgety; almost as though he was expecting Deke to bring up a particular conversation, and was desperate to hear it so he could be released of his anxiety.

‘So what’s it like being an agent?’ Peter asked, looking up at Deke with curiosity.

‘I mean, it’s quite exciting really. Although, lower agents get treated like dirt.’ He paused for a second, smiling at a memory. ‘Like Davis… everyone’s so mean to Davis.’

Peter laughed with puzzlement, and was about to ask who Davis was, when he noticed a car on the opposite side of the road. He stopped for a second to take a look. Deke, who was up ahead, noticed his absence and turned around with confusion.

‘What is it?’ he asked worriedly.

Peter continued to eye the car with suspicion, and then turned to Deke and forced a smile. 

‘It’s nothing… Let’s just keep walking.’ He pushed Deke down the road and, every few moments, glanced behind with apprehension. Once they were out of range, Peter turned to Deke anxiously. ‘There was a man in that car taking photos of us. Did you see him?’ Peter stared at Deke intensely, the concern clearly evident on his face. Deke shook his head and turned to look behind him while Peter kept talking. ‘It’s the same guy.’  
Deke jolted his head back towards Peter with wide eyes.

‘You’ve seen that guy before? But there are so many people around here! What are the chances of that?’ Deke exclaimed with childlike excitement.

Peter raised a puzzled eyebrow. 

‘Yeah… that’s kind of the point.’

‘Oh, right sorry. I’m just used to knowing like everyone in my community… it’s so weird…’ Deke shook his head in bafflement and stared into the distance.

‘Right.’ Peter said not totally impressed by his new agent-roomie. Deke gazed at him goofily and took a deep sniff in through his nose.

‘I smell something. I have no idea what… Please can we have some!’

‘Yeah I suppose so… how have you never smelt waffles before?’ Peter was amazed and horrified. ‘You’re weird, man,’ Peter laughed, ‘I’m glad to have your company.’

‘Thanks! I come from an alternate timeline where the world has been destroyed and the human race is being run by crazy blue aliens called the Kree. So, you know, there’s sure to be a bit of ineptitude in the general-life department. Just one sec - I’m gonna go and get some waffles!’ 

‘Wait -- have you seen the man before today--’

Deke ran towards the origin of the waffle smell and Peter chased after him quickly, trying not to lose him in the crowd. Once Deke arrived at the waffle stand, Peter stood watching as Deke turned around and put his thumbs up enthusiastically. He waved back and then scratched his head with bewilderment, a dumbfounded, but slightly amused expression plastered across his face. He spoke his mind to the ground.

‘I’m beginning to feel a little bit like a babysitter.’


	3. Late Nights at the Market

After the interesting events of the early evening, and once they’d eaten about ten waffles between them, Peter remembered his worry about the man in the car. The light had almost entirely faded from the sky, and now Deke and Peter sat in the neighbourhood park, their faces only illuminated by the yellow glare of a nearby streetlamp. Deke was talking about something to do with his grandparents, and how cool they were, but Peter wasn’t fully listening. He breathed out slowly and leaned back on the rickety green bench.

‘I can’t stop thinking about the guy in the car.’ Peter mumbled out-of-the-blue.

‘Huh? Wait you mean the guy from before waffles?’

‘Yeah. It’s just really weird. I mean, it’s horrible to think that he could be watching us right now… anyone could. At any time.’

Deke looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

‘You know, for a teenager, you’re really quite deadpan. I though teenagers are meant to be out getting drunk all the time – “take every day as it comes” etc.!’ 

‘I’m not deadpan!’ Peter squawked defensively, ‘I’m just a bit… thoughtful.’ 

‘No. You’re deadpan. I can just tell.’ Deke laughed. ‘But don’t worry. That’s a cool thing – you rock it.’

‘You know no one uses that word, right? …Besides, I don’t rock it because I’m not.’ Peter sulked. ‘I’m gonna prove it to you… When I’m feeling less offended.’ He jumped up and turned to Deke. ‘I think we should probably go back now. Aunt May’s used to me being out a lot because, well… you know why… but she still worries a lot.’

‘Yeah, you’re right.’ Deke smiled, ‘besides we need to eat some of that cheese we bought… it looks amazing!’

‘Yeah, you can say that again – I swear that stuff was forged in heaven.’ 

They both laughed, and stood up to leave, but as they did so the car from earlier pulled around the corner and started slowing down as it got closer to them. This time even Deke noticed the car, and the two boys turned to look at each other in panic.

‘Out the back way!’ Deke yelled, turning around and beginning to sprint towards the back entrance. Peter hesitated and then saw how far ahead Deke was and bolted after him. Puffing lightly, but quickly catching up, he yelled something at Deke.

‘We can’t show them where we live. That’s what they want.’

‘Yeah… I know… we need to get into town’ Deke responded, much more out of breath than Peter, ‘they’ll lose us among all of those people.’

They stopped briefly at the road and checked to see if the car was following. Seeing that the coast was clear, they ran towards the late-night market.  
The market was filled with colours; vibrant fruits and vegetables lined stalls that were crowded with people, and silky gold and yellow clothes hung from above. It wasn’t hard for two overwhelmed people to disappear here. 

Peter pushed Deke towards a stand in the centre, and then ducked underneath the table that was holding up an array of sandwiches. The man running the stand, who seemed to recognise Peter, frowned and beckoned for him and Deke to stay low to the ground until he finished serving a customer. Once he had finished, the man knelt down so that he was almost at eyelevel with Peter.

‘Peter, who are you hiding from? Is it those pesky kids again? I hate the way they treat you ---’

‘No, no Mr Delmar, it’s not the kids from school, we’re just hiding from…’ He turned to look at Deke for help, realising he couldn’t exactly explain the truth. Deke frowned and looked at the man, wide eyed.

‘We’re playing hide and seek.’

Peter mentally face-palmed and gave Deke a look like he was going to kill him. Mr Delmar, looking slightly confused, raised an eyebrow.

‘--- This is my uncle Deke… we’re hiding from his son!’ Peter frowned, trying to make his excuse for their odd behaviour plausible. ‘He’s ten… he really likes hide and seek…’

Mr Delmar looked slightly confused, but he accepted it nonetheless.

‘Ah that’s lovely,’ he smiled, ‘it’s nice to see a little bit of childish spirit. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ve got to serve another customer.’ He stood up and called over to a lady who had seemed interested in the stand, and then looked back at them and shrugged. ‘You’re welcome to hide here for as long as you feel like…’

‘Thank you Mr Delmar – you’re the best!’ Peter grinned, sticking his thumbs up. Deke nodded goofily and then turned to Peter, a serious look on his face.

‘How long do you think we should say here before it’s safe?’ he asked.

‘I think a better question is: how long can we stay here until it’s no longer safe?’

‘That really isn’t better…’ Deke said shaking his head, ‘it’s just mine in reverse.’

Peter rolled his eyes and then noticed something and quickly put his hand over Deke’s mouth. He motioned to outside the stall, where two men and a woman had gathered in a group and were searching each of the stalls. Peter slowly released his hand from Deke’s mouth and turned to him with a panicked tone.

‘We need to run before they reach our stall.’ He whispered, and Deke nodded in agreement. There was a slight hesitation, while one of the men went out of view, and then Deke clenched his fist and turned to Peter.

‘Now!’

They crawled towards the back of the tent, and rolled underneath its flappy material, creeping into the stall behind it. Once they were both on their feet, and had checked to see if the people searching for them were still on the other side of the tent, they bolted in the direction of Peter’s house. Luckily they weren’t too far away; Deke’s heart was beating wildly, and he struggled for breath as he followed Peter towards his apartment. Peter ran faster, and was more agile than anyone Peter knew: he jumped two walls, climbed up a building and ran across four roofs, all just to cut of a bit of their journey.  
Deke was beginning to think he should’ve learnt parkour because he was wildly incapable of following Peter effectively, and it probably ended up making their journey longer because it took him so long to pluck up the courage to jump between buildings. 

When they reached the apartment building, Peter didn’t hesitate before harshly typing in the key code. Still feeling the effects of adrenaline, Deke looked behind to check no one had followed them. They pushed open the door, raced up the stairs, and fell into the apartment, panting heavily.

May, who had been waiting a full hour for some milk and biscuits, put her hands on her hips, a vicious look creeping across her face. 

‘What the hell have you been doing?’ she screamed. The boys looked at each other apprehensively.

What lie were they going to tell this time?


	4. The ‘Help Line’

Deke stayed at the Parkers’ for another two months, without (many) problems. Although Deke and Peter were both still worried about the events of the first night, they didn’t spot the car again, and so decided mutually not to overthink it. Over that time they both became really good friends; Deke would spend every day exploring the city, however he always made sure that he was back for when Peter got home from school. Peter had described him as his ‘weird uncle, who he now couldn’t imagine living without.’ Deke quite liked that description, although it made him feel old. He couldn’t imagine how old FitzSimmons felt, being his grandparents…

It had taken Peter around three days before he figured out that Deke had no idea he was Spiderman, and actually that he barely knew who Spiderman was in the first place. When questioned, Deke had said something about growing up without much information about the modern world. Peter had zoned out when Deke had mentioned blue aliens – sometimes he just said weird nonsense, and so at the time, his Spanish homework had seemed more important. 

Deke’s lack of knowledge about him being Spiderman didn’t bother Peter, although he found it strange that SHIELD had sent Deke to stay without knowing what he was getting himself into. In fact, Deke was so oblivious; he hadn’t even noticed that Peter arrived home three hours late each night because he was out fighting crime. Peter wondered how he’d managed to survive this long as a SHIELD agent.

The problems started one a day at the end of the summer term. For perhaps the first time ever, Deke had arrived home late (he’d got distracted when he had discovered his first ever sweet shop) and so Peter was already home when he got back.

Deke walked through the door and into the Parkers’ apartment. He announced his arrival loudly, expecting a response. Receiving none, he called out again. This time he could hear a faint mumbling from behind the door to May’s bedroom.  
Deke bolted towards the door and threw it open, noticing immediately that something was wrong. He could still hear the mumbling and paused for a second to work out where it was coming from. 

The cupboard.

‘May? May, are you ok?’ Deke exclaimed, throwing open the cupboard door to reveal her tied up inside. Deke fumbled with the cable tie that held May’s hands behind her back, and ended up running into the kitchen to get some scissors to cut it. Once her hands were free, May pulled down the gag in her mouth.

‘What happened?’ Deke asked seriously, pulling May from the ground. May’s eyes were wide and she shook her head, tears swelling in her eyes.

‘They took him.’ She spluttered, breaking into a full sob.

‘They took who? Peter?’

May nodded and Deke pulled her into a hug.

‘Hey,’ Deke spoke gently, remembering how he had seen Simmons comfort Fitz when he was agitated, ‘it’s ok don’t worry.’ Deke knew he needed more information. ‘Do you know who took him?’ Deke released her from the hug and looked down at her seriously. ‘May? What aren’t you telling me?’  
May knew that she wouldn’t be able to help Peter without telling Deke the truth. Throughout the months she had known him, he had come across as quite trustworthy and, after all, he was a SHIELD agent. She looked at him worriedly and bit her lip.

‘Peter’s Spiderman.’ 

‘Who? Wait, the guy from the vlog that Peter keeps showing me?’ He scratched his head thoughtfully. ‘That’s a bit narcissistic…’ Deke pulled a face in memory, and then everything started clicking into place. May could practically see the cogs turning in his brain, and she understood because that was how she had reacted too. ‘So… that’s why he’s always home from school so late… and why he’s more athletic than like anyone I know… trust me there’s a high standard.’

May nodded and another tear rolled down her cheek. Deke reached for a tissue and smiled at her empathetically. He understood what it felt like to lose the last person close to you.

‘May. We’re going to get him back.’

********************************************************************************

May explained how a group of men had broken into their house and drugged them through their food. They had then tied her up and put her in the cupboard and had forced Peter to go with them. May explained that that was the only way they would have been able to take Peter, as he went up against people like that ‘far too often’.

‘But I think I know who it was that took him. Before I went under, I caught a glimpse of a symbol on the inside jacket of one of the men.’ She bit her lip and looked at him seriously. ‘It was Hydra.’

Deke widened his eyes in imitation of her, but then quickly closed them in confusion.

‘What’s Hydra?’ he winced.

‘What’s Hydra?’ May exclaimed gobsmacked, ‘everyone knows about Hydra.’

Deke pulled a face and shrugged.

‘I don’t.’

May looked at him seriously and bit her lip.

‘You’re not a SHIELD agent, are you?’

Deke looked at the ground and kicked his heel slightly. 

‘No.’ he mumbled, still looking down. May groaned and ran her fingers through her hair in stress. Deke looked up and frowned, ‘but I do know SHIELD agents.’

At that, May looked hopeful.

‘Do you think you could you get in contact with them?’

Deke nodded and pulled out his phone. He scrolled through the list of contacts until he found the one, labelled ‘Help Line’. Clicking on it, he put the phone to his ear, waiting for someone to pick up. The phone rang for five tones and then it put him through to a weird voice message, left by Fitz:

‘Hey, this is Fitz. Deke, if you’re calling this then you’re either in trouble, or have some weird question to ask about basil or gummy bears or something. Either way, we’re not available right now. This message will send an automated help sheet through to your phone---’

Deke frowned and scratched his head, murmuring to himself quietly.

‘But, how could he do that… the whole point is that they gave me an untraceable phone---’

‘You’re probably wondering how I’m sending you the help sheet? Well, I bugged your phone before you left. You’re welcome. Either way, I’ll see you soon… or hopefully not…   
No, but seriously though… we’re missing you here at SHIELD – it’s really quiet without you. That sounded weird, I’m not gonna be nice. Um… bye.’

The automated message beeped to a close and Deke smiled to himself, suddenly feeling a wave of homesickness.

‘So what did they say?’ May asked, hopefully.

‘Sorry, it was a message… but it wasn’t a total loss.’ Deke’s phone pinged and he opened the ‘help sheet’ that had been sent by Fitz. Seeing what was on it he grinned. ‘I know what we need to do.’  
He ran towards the cupboard and pulled out an armful of clothes, tutting harshly as he dumped them one-by-one onto the ground.  
‘Have you got anything white?’ he asked. May shook her head, observing Deke confusedly. 

‘I don’t think so, why?’

‘Because… it’s what the help sheet said: ‘the baddies never expect to see themselves at work.’’

‘Ok, well that’s very cryptic. Are we meant to clone them or something?’

Deke laughed.

‘No, what it means is we need to dress up. I know it’s old fashioned, and trust me, I’m really not an old fashioned guy, but I genuinely think this will work.’

May shrugged.

‘It could work… I suppose. But even if it does, we still have no idea where we’re going.’

‘Oh, yeah no, I’ve got that too. That thing you said about… Hedra?’

‘Hydra?’

‘Yeah, that – Fitz sent me a list of all of the suspected Hydra bases. He must have thought it was important too… Whichever base is closest must be the one they took Peter to.’

‘Ok, brilliant. Thank you so much… oh, by the way, why were you looking for something white?’

‘A lab coat!’ Deke grinned, ‘no one ever suspects the sweet guy in the lab coat… who happens to be your grandpa, and is pulling out creepy wires from the neck of the woman you love, while her head is in a vice and evil robots hold guns to your head…’ Deke trailed off, caught-up in the memory.

‘Ok… yeah, that was way to specific… but like, lab coats… it’s probably a good idea.’ May frowned confusedly and started to walk towards the door. ‘There are two in Peter’s room – he usually uses them when he’s making his webbing.’

‘Great.’


	5. The-Middle-Of-Nowhere

Once May and Deke were adequately dressed in a disguise of sorts (two nerdy Hydra scientists without any form of ID) May threw her keys towards Deke – her throwing skills and his catching meaning it became more of an assault.

‘Ouch,’ Deke grumbled.

‘Ooh, sorry…’ May winced, ‘you get the car started and go ahead. There’s something I need to do first.’

Deke nodded and left to sort out the car. Once alone, May jumped towards the phone and scrolled through the recent numbers until she found the one she was looking for. She shook her head disbelievingly and began dialling the number she had memorised. Sighing deeply in incredulity, she pressed call.  
‘I can’t believe I’m doing this.’ She groaned.

Outside, Deke was struggling badly with the car, and sifted through the set of car keys with avid curiosity and distress.

‘But which one is it?’ Deke wondered to the purple bobble head that was staring at him from the car window. He groaned and thumped his head against the window in submission, aggravating the car alarm with a jolt. ‘Ah—woa—what?’ Deke panicked, jumping away from the vehicle that now appeared to be attacking him.

On hearing the alarm, May came running down the stairs, the confusion obvious on her face. She motioned for Deke to hand her the keys, suddenly understanding what had happened, and then beeped off the car alarm (to the gratitude of many of the not-so-forgiving passers-by). 

‘You’re meant to click here.’ She smiled, showing Deke the car key. She clicked it again and the car’s locks opened with a satisfying, hollow clunk. To Deke, the sound seemed as though it was taunting him; poking fun at his idiocy towards a task that was meant to be so easy. He didn’t like this car one bit.

His dislike for the vehicle thickened throughout the journey, as it seemed more and more that they would never reach their destination.

‘Are we nearly there yet?’ he moaned, massaging the space between his eyes.

‘Deke, you sound like a five-year-old,’ May tutted, an undertone of stress crackling in her voice. ‘If this place was on the map, I would tell you… Unfortunately, I’m improvising. This locator-thing that that Fitz guy sent us really isn’t particularly accurate.’

May took a left turn onto an even more deserted road, and Deke rolled down his window to poke his head out of the car.

‘Wait! May! It’s there!’ he yelled, scrambling for a look at the map.

May jumped and the car skidded off the road into the arid field of dry crops. They both screamed loudly, and continued to scream, until the car came to an eventual halt. If they had hoped not to leave any trace of themselves behind, they had very much failed, as now they sat in the wide indent of space that they had carved into the metre-high crop of corn.

May’s face was one of scorn.

‘Deke! Never shock me like that! Thank god weren’t on a motorway, or we’d both be dead.’

Deke looked at the inflated airbag in front of him and bit his lip. Still slightly dazed, he seemed to have lost the ability to form a sentence. May rolled her eyes, deeming her frustrations unworthy of the time or effort. ‘You said you saw the base?’ she asked hopefully.

‘Yeah, no… um it’s kinda weird.’ Deke coughed and the squeak in his voice ebbed away. ‘I think they’ve got cloaking, like on Zephyr One.’

May looked at him blankly and raised her eyebrows.  
‘Yeah, I have no idea what that is.’

‘Oh, right. It’s like…’ he opened the door and stepped outside, beckoning for May to follow. From their viewpoint, all that was visible was the open sky, and the vast arid land stretching for miles. But something in the distance glistened slightly – it was almost as though the sky was shifting. Something about it didn’t quite fit. Deke pointed at something on the skyline, close to where May was looking. ‘You see that there?’ Deke pointed to a flock of birds that were swooping across the sky. ‘Well, look behind you.’

When May turned around, she experienced the weirdest feeling of bafflement, for behind her, she could see in the sky the exact same flock of birds, circling in the same way.

‘How? Wha…?’

Deke grinned.

‘It’s so clever. Whoever invented it was a genius. Basically, the material on the building over there reflects its surroundings, making it appear invisible. That’s why the birds in that direction appear in reverse.’

‘Only Hydra and SHIELD would have the money to afford technology like that… That means Peter must be in there.’ At that May set off, marching quickly towards the building that wasn’t there. It was a few moments before Deke realised they were moving.

‘Wait for me!’ he yelled, trampling down a path of dried corn. The farmers were going to have a field day when they saw the mess they’d made. ‘May! We can’t just walk in!’

‘Yes we can,’ May called back, ignoring his concerns, ‘we’re dressed for it, remember.’ 

Deke sighed and tripped slightly on a fallen bit of corn.

‘Alright,’ he huffed, ‘but can you at least wait for me?’

May crossed her arms and turned around, waiting for Deke to catch up. Watching him stumble about would’ve been hilarious to any observer, and even May stifled a giggle, however her mind was on other things. 

Once Deke caught up, May led them to the edge of the cornfield. Deke squatted down below the surface, using the sea of corn as cover. He tapped May’s hand and she dropped below the surface, imitating him.

‘OK, so how are we going to do this?’ Deke asked.

‘I think that we should dust down our clothes and just walk in. Obviously they’ll need IDs and stuff but then---’

Suddenly Deke’s phone rang. The alien-voice gimic that Mack had downloaded had seemed funny at the time, but now, as it reverberated around the field, Deke had wished he’d chosen something a little more obscure.

‘It’s Fitz!’ he gasped, pressing the green button. Deke’s eyes lit up as he tuned in to the familiar Scottish accent in his ear.

‘Deke? Deke, can you hear me?’ Fitz’s voice came out slightly buzzy, but it was clear enough.

‘Yes! Fitz, oh my god—’

‘Deke, where the hell are you?’ Fitz half-yelled. ‘My tracker says you’re near the Hydra base in the middle of nowhere.’

‘Yeah, we are – I sent you a message. Wait… you had a tracker on me this whole time?’

‘What are you doing out there?’ Fitz groaned, exasperated.

At that, May (who hadn’t been particularly enamoured by the rate at which the conversation was moving) grabbed the phone from Deke’s hand.

‘We’re saving Peter,’ she exclaimed with passionate force.

There was a slight pause as Fitz worked out that Deke hadn’t just had a voice break, and that someone else had taken the phone.

‘Umm… who’s Peter?’ he responded tentatively.


	6. Bad Language

It didn’t take long for Fitz (aided by Daisy) to hack into the Hydra system and put Deke and May’s faces onto the database. Once the task had been completed, Fitz sent over the IDs for their phones, which were labelled with fake names: May was Doctor Jayn Clark, and Deke was Doctor Dewy Davies. He smirked at the alliteration.

With their phone-IDs in hand, May and Deke set off towards the Hydra building. As they approached, two of the large panels parted, revealing the inside. Deke cast May a knowing look of relief – clearly Daisy had managed to open the doors for them. He smiled as he thought of her; it had been nice to hear her voice again, even if it was just over the phone.

Deke and May tried to walk through the building as though they had been there every day of their lives, but when they reached the ID checking station, both of them felt their heart flutter. Deke gulped and held out his phone – May did similarly.

‘OK, you’re all clear.’ The scarily body-built security guard smirked, ushering them onwards impatiently.

Once they were far enough away from the man to be in the clear, Deke exhaled slowly. May stopped awkwardly at the water dispenser, Deke still behind her.

‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m relieved, but I’m sure that was way too easy.’ May worried.

‘Yeah, it did seem a bit… casual. But, you know why, it’s probably because they have the cloaking – they just assume that only Hydra agents could possibly know about this place. I mean, look around – it’s so empty!’

May turned her gaze to the almost-deserted hall they were standing in, realising suddenly how conspicuous they looked.

‘Where do you think they’re keeping Peter?’ May bit her lip.

‘I don’t know,’ Deke responded, his eyes fixed on something in the distance. ‘Why don’t we just ask?’

Deke turned and marched rapidly towards the sign labelled ‘labs’. May chased him in panic.

‘We can’t just walk in there’ she gasped, as Deke scanned his phone against the wall panel.

‘Why not?’ Deke grinned, ‘we’re dressed for it, remember?’

He grabbed the handle and flung the door open.

Inside, fifteen faces glared at them accusingly, and then looked back down at their work with little interest. Deke nodded to May and approached the nearest scientist, a young man, who looked like he was inventing a new toxin by mixing liquid nitrogen with amygdalin. On first look he seemed relatively approachable… but this was Hydra.

‘What do you want?’ he snapped, without looking up from his work.

At that, Deke snapped into acting-mode, realising he was going to have to act pretty tough to get this guy to trust him.

‘We’re looking for a gifted resource under the name Parker. We’ve been assigned to perform regulatory tests.’ He caught the other man’s eye and didn’t look away. Eventually the man looked back down at his work. ‘I’d rather not be kept waiting.’

‘I thought Austin was working on Parker today – Smith said she had almost broken him last time.’

May let out a quiet, high-pitched sound at the thought of Peter in such a situation, and then coughed to try and cover it up.

‘Yes, there was a change of plan.’ Deke growled. ‘My orders come from very high up; you can see if you must.’

The man nodded, and Deke presented his phone again, this time showing the email supposedly sent from the head of department. The scientist sighed bad-temperedly and pointed towards a door in the corner. 

‘Down that corridor. He’s on the right.’

Deke nodded and walked over to the door in the corner, May following behind. He knew this must be hard for her – it was hard for him – and he dreaded to think what Peter was going to look like when they got there (not to mention how obvious the relief would be on his face, and how that would totally bust their cover if they weren’t in private).

‘Ok, it’s this one,’ Deke gulped, swiping his phone against the wall. He smiled at May comfortingly and then threw open the door. Peter was inside – that was clear – but Deke couldn’t work out where he was, for the room contained thousands of mirrors, all of different heights, shapes and facing in different directions. At this time, all of the Peters were slumped forwards; eyes closed. There was something horrifically chilling about the image – Deke could imagine how this was a form of torture.

‘Peter?’ May whispered, ‘we’re here to come and get you. It’s Aunt May.’  
There was a pause and Peter didn’t stir, so May tried again. ‘Peter, it’s Aunt May.’

Deke walked forwards and hit a mirror. He turned to the right, thinking he could see him, but it was just a reflection.

‘Peter?’ he tried. This time something on his face stirred.

‘He’s only asleep,’ May exhaled, ‘thank God.’  
Deke pushed a few mirrors out of the way, and moved towards the direction he’d heard the sound. It took a few minutes (as the room was much larger than he had previously anticipated) but eventually he found what he was looking for.

Peter was tied up on a rickety wooden chair – tubes poking into him from every angle. His eyes were sunken and dim, with dark bruising all around the outside, and a deep cut lined his upper forehead.

‘Peter!’ May cried. Deke looked at her with concern.

‘Peter, are you awake?’ he said gently. ‘Peter?’

Peter’s voice croaked and then he coughed.

‘You know, you should really stop saying my name so many times if you don’t want to be obvious.’ He smiled exhaustedly. ‘I always knew you weren’t a spy.’

Deke grinned and May sighed in relief.

‘Ok, how are we going to get you out of here?’

It took a few moments for them to decide how they were going to escape, and for Peter to explain all of the exits he knew of (which were next-to-none). Eventually they decided they would just improvise, and they lifted Peter out of his chair (unpicking the wires) and dragged him towards the door.

The three of them stumbled out into the corridor, Deke and May each holding an arm to prop Peter up. All the while, Peter was cursing, and May was telling him off for it. 

‘You’re telling me off for my language now?’ he asked incredulously. 

‘You should be grateful, young man,’ Deke said seriously. Peter sniggered and Deke looked at the ground. ‘Oh, come on. That was just a little bit authoritative, wasn’t it?’ he asked.

‘Nope.’ Peter grinned, attempting to pat him on the shoulder. “I’m afraid you’re going to have to keep working on that.’

As they turned the corner there was a high-pitched squeal (which they later realised was Deke) and the three of them stopped-dead. In front of them, blocking up the corridor, were fifteen armed agents, each pointing a sniper towards their heads. Peter gasped.

‘Holy sh—’

‘—Don’t you dare say it.’


	7. Leave Now or Stay Forever

May’s face was one of panic. Here she stood, side-by-side with the boy she saw as her son, and a man who in recent months had truly become a friend she would cherish for life. Someone who would dive into a secret Hydra base at the drop of a hat. And she had no idea how she was going to get out of this.

Deke’s heart was racing. He had seen aliens, space ships and murder – and those had been his normal days. Surly this couldn’t be where it was going to end for him. Not after he had just discovered gummy bears. And pizza.  
At least he was about to die alongside two good friends. 

Peter was half unconscious, and his vision was slurry like the condensation on a bus window. He could just about make out the dark figures in the distance, and the clickedy sound of guns clacked in his brain like claves. His aunt whispered something in his ear; it was inaudible, but the tension in her voice was unmistakable. Peter looked up to attempt a smile, but as he did so, something in the distance caught his eye: a flash of red.

May gasped and Deke recoiled as the machine took out two Hydra agents with an arm-gun-flame-thing (or at least that’s what it looked like to Deke) and threw another one against the wall. Within seconds, Iron Man had taken out all of the agents in the corridor, and was poised ready for more. Realising for now it was clear, he knelt down by the slumped-over Peter, and glanced at May worriedly.

‘You came.’ She smiled. Tony Stark furrowed his eyebrows confusedly and turned his attention towards Peter, hiding his face slightly.

‘Of course I came,’ he grumbled. ‘You said you were in trouble…’ He looked at May gravely, and caught her smiling slightly at his last comment. ‘We need to get him out of here.’ Stark ordered. He fiddled with something on his suit and then a hexagon disk shot out towards Peter’s chest. As soon as it touched him, a weird bubbly substance exploded outwards, engulfing Peter in a force field. Deke recognised the material as something he had used for scavenging before he’d found the anti-gravity device. 

Stark looked down at his arm again (but was briefly distracted as an agent came up behind him and he had to throw him against the wall) and held down a key for a few seconds. Suddenly Peter began to levitate.

‘Ah cool.’ Peter coughed, his eyes fluttering opening slightly in a daze. ‘Hey Steak is that you? You really need to pay me back for those chicken wings…’

‘My name’s Stark. And no. You need to pay me back for those chicken wings. You ate ten of them.’

‘I had lots of hunger.’

‘Right.’

Deke shuffled uncomfortably and then looked at May questioningly.

‘Oh, sorry Deke. This is Tony Stark.’

‘Ah, right. Nice to meet you.’ Deke smiled, holding out a hand. Stark ignored it and Deke looked slightly wounded. Stark – who was now feeling guilty but would never admit it – pretended he’d been fiddling with something and held out his hand in acknowledgement.

‘How is it you don’t know who I am? Are you British or something? They’re quite far away.’

‘I mean technically I’m half British…’ he tailed off. ‘Wait, should I know who you are?’

‘No, it’s just you would unless you’ve been living under a rock.’

‘More like with the last of humanity on an alien spaceship in an alternate universe. But you know, you were close enough. There were a lot of rocks…’

‘Right… Who did you say you were again?’

‘Deke Shaw. Maybe you’ve heard of my grandparents Fitz and Simmons?’

‘Yeah their names ring a bell… They were probably rivals or something. Wow, what age are you… they got to it quickly!’

‘Ah, gross man, come on. We’re the same age… time travel is messed up.’

At that they heard a yell down the corridor, and Deke’s eyes widened. He had heard someone shout ‘bomb’. That was never a good sign. Stark clicked a button and his helmet fell over his face.

‘Ok, I’m going ahead – I’ll clear the way for you – you two need to push Peter towards the exit downstairs.’

‘Got it.’ They said in unison.

‘Oh, one more thing…’ He pushed a gun into May’s hands and she nodded.

***

The escalator. This was always going to have been the part that would be tough.

Deke wrestled with Peter’s floating carcass, attempting to keep him steady – whilst trying not to fall on him – as they went down the escalator. The suit Peter was wearing hadn’t seemed to grasp the idea of an escalator; it seemed to think that Peter should be floating in mid-air, rather than travelling down it. Although Deke was managing the problem with utmost craftsmanship (by carefully nudging Peter downwards and then grasping quickly onto the bannister for safety) in the end, all of the bobbing around looked like a bundle of dead fish that had just been chucked off a fishing boat. 

May, who had been standing behind Deke, and was holding up the weapon in anticipation of trouble, rolled her eyes when she saw what he was doing. When they reached the bottom of the escalator, it came as a relief to both of them. They were in the hall they had started off in.

‘The exit isn’t far from here,’ Deke called.

They both sprinted towards the exit, and once they reached it, burst through the double doors. Deke dragged Peter through the cornfield, May following quickly behind. They just about reached the car when there was a huge rumble, and the (once invisible) top of the building burst into flames. May’s heart skipped a beat when she remembered that Stark was still inside. There was a small pause, and then something whizzed out of the top of the building. May hadn’t doubted him. Not really. 

***

A few weeks after Deke, May and (although Deke didn’t like to admit it) Stark had rescued Peter, they all sat around the table to discuss what had happened. Peter was almost fully recovered, but this conversation had been long-awaiting, and he was ready for it to become an assault.

‘Peter, we’re not going to blame you.’ May started.

‘Yeah, except we are.’ Stark added, earning a dirty look from May. ‘Well, it was his fault. In my defence.’

‘It was also your fault, because you’re always throwing him into these dangerous situations.’

‘Hey, that’s not fair – he does it himself!’

‘Nope, I vote it’s your fault.’ Deke nodded.

‘But you would say that because—’

‘—Guys! It doesn’t matter whose fault it was. It happened. I’m still alive. Let’s continue.’

The conversation went on similarly, reaching the conclusion that Peter should be allowed to keep being Spiderman, as long as Stark kept a closer eye on him. That gained a groan from Peter.

Once Stark had left, Deke sat Peter and May back down at the table and smiled sadly.

‘Are you alright?’ Peter frowned. Deke shook his head.

‘No, I’m really sad. You see, I had only ever planned to stay here for a few weeks, and now here I am – months down the line – and I still haven’t left. You two are two of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met, and I promise I’ll keep in contact but… I’m worried that…’

‘If you don’t leave now, you won’t leave at all?’

‘Yeah.’ He smiled at the ground.

May smiled sadly and then an idea came to her and she grinned.

‘Ok,’ she said, ‘but you have to let us throw you a goodbye party first.’

***

The party was brilliant – the biggest May had ever thrown. As the night began to wind down, Deke noticed a peculiar man who had been sitting in the corner watching him. He had an eye patch over one eye, and wore a strange smiled that spoke of curiosity. Deke walked towards him, but he lost sight of him for a second as someone walked in front of him. When his vision readjusted, the man had vanished. Deke turned around to see if the man had moved, but he was nowhere to been seen. It was as though he had never been there at all.


End file.
